Epiphany
by Klutzygirl33
Summary: Set post "FZZT". Leo has an epiphany about his feelings for Jemma after she nearly dies.


**I don't own Agents of SHIELD and never will. No copyright infringement intended.**

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It wasn't until after he had calmed down from the chaos of the day that the truth hit Leo like a bolt of lightning. He had been trying to go to sleep, but his eyes snapped open and he stared up at the ceiling. Holy fuck, he was in love with Jemma. That's why he had been so upset (he was still a little upset, actually) about what had occurred. He wanted to tell her right that minute so he went to go find her. She was still a little freaked out about everything and Leo knew she was still awake.

"Hey, why are you awake?" Jemma waited expectantly for his answer.

"I couldn't sleep. I was worried about you." Leo sat down next to her and grinned.

"What are you smiling about?" Now she was curious and wanted to know what he was thinking about. It was actually driving her a little crazy.

"No reason." He just sat there for a few minutes, taking comfort from her presence. He had to build up his courage to tell her the truth and desperately hoped she felt the same way. It took him about half an hour until he finally decided to tell her. "So what happened with you made me realize something, Jemma. You're my best friend, right?" At her nod and murmured 'of course', he continued. "I feel like a moron for not realizing this much sooner, but I'm in love with you."

Jemma's mouth dropped open and she gaped at him for a few seconds. She thought the conversation had been going in this direction, but she still hadn't really expected those words to come out of his mouth. "You love me?"

He nodded. "I do. What about you?" Leo laughed nervously and waited for her response. He just hoped she didn't break his heart. He was also terrified that he had ruined their friendship forever. Should he have told her the truth? Maybe it would have been better to keep quiet.

Fortunately for him, Jemma quelled his panic fairly quickly. Once she recovered, she laughed. "I love you too, you idiot. Stop having a meltdown."

He laughed in relief just before she kissed him. They were interrupted rather rudely by Skye. "Yes! Finally!"

Ward rolled his eyes at her. "I can't believe you dragged me into this. We're eavesdropping on a love confession! I don't care about that."

Jemma and Leo looked up and tried to find their hiding spot. "We can hear you, you know!" Leo yelled.

Skye froze but Ward just sighed. "Oops. Sorry! We wanted to see how this conversation was going to pan out. Continue; we'll leave. Come on, Ward!" Stomps echoed in the room and the door closed.

"So where were we before we got interrupted?" Leo pulled her in for another kiss and the two made out for a few minutes.

"That was nice. I should have told you that before, but we got interrupted." Jemma hadn't been this happy in a long time and she was glad her near death experience had led to this.

"You want to go back to bed? We can make out some more … or go have sex. If you want of course. We don't have to." He stuttered nervously and hoped he hadn't just screwed this up.

"Maybe some sex later. I'm just really tired right now. I wouldn't mind cuddling, though." She smiled nervously at her.

"I cannot believe you just tried to do that, Fitz. Smooth, dude!" Skye yelled.

"You weren't supposed to give us away again," Ward hissed, unsure of why he was still there. Maybe because Skye had prevented him from leaving every time he tried to get away.

"We're going to go so we can have some privacy. Talk to you later!" Jemma stood up and led Leo back to her room.

Leo pulled her into his arms. "I am so glad I didn't lose you." He kissed the top of her head as she burrowed into his chest.

"Same here. I was really scared, but I'm glad we figured out what to do in time." She was going to have nightmares about this day for a long time, however. It was definitely going to stick with her.

It was going to stick with Leo too, but he was determined to be her rock. He wouldn't let her deal with this trauma on her own. It wouldn't be right.

Jemma did end up having nightmares, but she wasn't alone because the team rallied around her. With their help – but mostly Leo's – she got past what had happened. And Leo had nightmares of his own about what had happened, but they gradually faded away. He was just glad he wasn't wallowing in denial about his feelings for anymore, especially since they were now pretty happy as a couple. FitzSimmons became a more formidable force once they were closer.


End file.
